Textile sliver drafting machines



June 9, 1964 J. K. P. MACKIE 3,136,006

TEXTILE SILVER DRAFTING MACHINES Filed June 2B, 1961 2 sheets-sheet 2 nvenlor ttorneys United States Patent() 3,136,006 TEXTILE SLIVER DRAFTINGMACHINES .lohn K. l?. Mackie, Belfast, Northern Ireland, assigner t.lames Mackie it Sons Limited, Belfast, Northern Ireland, a Britishcompany Filed .lune 28, 1961, Ser. No. 120,280 Claims priority,application Great Britain July 5, 1960 3 Claims. (Cl. 19-252) Thisinvention relates to drafting devices of the double apron type in whichthe sliver is controlled in the drafting zone between a pair of movingaprons each in the form of a continuous driven belt. The invention isconcerned particularly with such devices when litted to spinning framesfor the direct spinning of textile yarns from sliver and also whenfitted, for example, to roving frames or when used for linisher drawingoperation.

During its passage between the aprons there is a tendency for the sliverto spread laterally and this elect needs to be counteracted by theprovision of a conductor preceding the drafting rollers. A certainamount of difliculty is caused in condensing the sliver to pass throughthis conductor, particularly in the treatment of crimped fibres such ascrimped viscose or other artificial or synthetic libres or wool. Theseslivers are of a very bulky nature and spread to a considerable extentduring the passage between the aprons, thus necessitating quite abruptcondensation before passing to the drafting rollers. To avoid thiseffect the aprons may be made of approximately the same width as thesliver itself and side members may be fitted outside the edge of theaprons so as to prevent the lateral spread of the sliver and thus avoidthe need for condensing it to pass to the driving rollers. One form ofapparatus for this purpose is described in the co-pending applicationSerial No. 103,333 filed o-n April 17, 1961.

The passage of the sliver between the various pairs of rollers tends toproduce localised wear. When using a double apron arrangement withoutany form of side control, the aprons have been several times as wide asthe sliver and in order to spread the eifects of wear, the sliver hasbeen caused to traverse in a lateral direction in relation to both theaprons and to the pairs of rollers. When side control is employed,however, the aprons are only the same width as the sliver itself and asa consequence it is impossible to traverse the sliver in relation to theaprons.

According to the present invention mechanism is provided for the lateraltraversing of each pair of cooperating aprons together with itsassociated side members as a unit in relation to the drawing rollers andother fixed rollers of the frame. This evens out the effects of wear andprevents the xed rollers becoming grooved by the passage of the sliver.There is, of course, no traversing of the sliver in relation to theaprons themselves but this is not necessary since the sliver is the samewidth as the aprons and the wear is thus substantially uniform over thesurface of the aprons.

Preferably the driving rollers are narrow faced so as to enter betweenthe side members and are traversed as part of the apron unit. The apronunits may be conructed in pairs, each of which has a separate drivetransmitted through a pair of gear wheels. In order to permit thenecessary traversing motion these gear wheels must be able to slide inrelation to one another and for this purpose one of the wheels is maderelatively broad to allow this sliding movement.

A construction in accordance with the invention will now be described byway of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is an elevation showing a single apron unit; and,

FIGURE 2 is a plan view corresponding to FIGURE 1 I,1l6,0l1fil PatentedJune 9, 1964 rice,

but showing a pair of aprons units mounted side by side.

Turning lirst to FIGURE 1 the construction shown is similar to thatdescribed in the co-pending application referred to above. The sliver 1to be drafted passes via a feed conductor 2 to feed rollers 3 and 4 andthence Y by way of an intermediate conductor 5 to an apron unitindicated generally at 6. This comprises a pair of cooperating aprons 7and 8 each of which passes around a driving roller 9 and idler rollers10. The unit also includes side control members, one of which is seen at11, and the rollers 9 are narrow faced so as to enter between them.Pressure is applied between the two aprons by way of a leaf spring 12.This bears downwardly against a member 13 from which the pressure istransmitted to the upper apron at a point 17 at one end and also bymeans of a pair of leaf springs 13 and 19. The components just describedtogether constitute the apron unit which is traversed as will bedescribed in more detail. The sliver emerging from the apron unit passesbetween the drafting rollers 20 and 21 in the usual way.

For purposes of traversing both the apron unit and the other componentsare mounted on a framework seen in more detail in FIGURE 2. As seen inFIGURE l, however, the apron unit as a whole is supported by a rod 25,the intermediate conductor 5 is supported by a rod 26 and the feedconductor 2 is supported by a bar 27. The rod 25 and 26 and the bar 27extend along the length of the machine for the traversing of successiveapron units and as seen from FIGURE 2 are connected together at one endby a cross-member 28 to which the traversing motion is applied. Thistraversing motion is derived from the rotation of the feed roller 3which has mounted at its end a worm 32 driving a worm wheel 33. The wormwheel 33 in its turn is mounted on a shaft 34 carrying a further worm 35driving a worm wheel 36 turning about a xed spindle 37. The worm wheel36 carries on its underside an eccentric projection 33 shown in dottedlines which engages a slot 39 in the cross-member 28. Consequently therotation of the worm wheel 36 produces reciprocation of the cross-member28 and hence a traversing movement of the framework constituted by therods 25 and 26 and the bar 27.

Drive to each apron unit is taken from a shaft 40 which extends alongthe length of the machine and is not traversed with the units. Theunits, however, are mounted in pairs, one such pair being shown inFIGURE 2. A common drive is taken to this pair of units from the shaft40 by way of a gear wheel 41 on the shaft which meshes with a gear wheel42 on a shaft 43 which carries the driving rollers 9 for the loweraprons of each unit. The gear wheel 42 in its turn meshes with a similargear wheel 44 on a shaft 45 which carries the upper driving rollers forthe aprons of the two units. In order to permit the necessary traversingmovement the gear wheel 41 is relatively broad thus enabling the gearwheel 42 to slide in relation to it during the traversing motion. Thegear wheels 42 and 44 are cut with very deep teeth so as to ensureproper meshing between them with varying sliver thicknesses which will,of course, alter the distance between the shafts 43 and 45.

In addition to the common drive to the two units of the pair there is acommon source of pressure in the form of a cross-member 50 which extendsbetween the members 13 of the two units and applies pressure t0 themfrom the leaf spring 12. This leaf spring extends from the underside ofa bowed member 51 shown in dotted lines in the drawings which extendsbetween an anchorage S2 and a second fixing point on the axis o-f thedrafting pressing rollers 21. Consequently when it is required toseparate the aprons of a unit the pressure is relieved by raising themember 51 which simultaneously frees both units of the pair.

a As already mentioned the traversing movement is applied to all theunits of the machine thus producing traversing movement of the sliver inrelation to the fixed rollers and thereby avoiding localised wear.

I claim: 1. Textile sliver drafting apparatus of the double apron typecomprising:

a plurality of apron units, each unit including a pair of cooperatingaprons; spaced side control members positioned adjacent opposite sidesof said aprons, the width of said aprons and the spacing between saidside control members being equal to a distance substantially equal tothe width of sliver being processed so that said side control membersengage the sliver being processed on opposite sides thereof throughoutits passage between said aprons; means affording connection of apositive drive for said aprons, said means including drive rollers foreach unit, the width of said rollers being such that they may bereceived between said side control members; means for feeding sliver tosaid units; drafting rolls for receiving sliver from said units; andmeans for traversing said units and said side control members withrespect to said drafting rolls, the

4 planes of said aprons being substantially parallel to the axes of saiddrafting rolls.

2. The combination defined by claim l in which said means affordingconnection of a positive drive for said aprons includes a pair of meshcdgears, the width of one gear being greater than the other to permitcontinued drive during traversing of said units.

3. The combination defined by claim 1, in which said units are mountedin pairs on a common traversing framework and in which a feed conductoris provided for each unit, said conductors also being mounted on saidframework.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,179,078 Allwood Nov. 7, 1939 2,182,695 Honda Dec. 5, 1939 2,202,755Casablancas May 2S, 1940 2,498,364 Fraser Feb. 2l, 1950 2,689,382Andrews et al. Sept. 21, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 891,474 France Dec. 11,1943 671,637 Great Britain May 7, 1952

1. TEXTILE SLIVER DRAFTING APPARATUS OF THE DOUBLE APRON TYPECOMPRISING: A PLURALITY OF APRON UNITS, EACH UNIT INCLUDING A PAIR OFCOOPERATING APRONS; SPACED SIDE CONTROL MEMBERS POSITIONED ADJACENTOPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID APRONS, THE WIDTH OF SAID APRONS AND THE SPACINGBETWEEN SAID SIDE CONTROL MEMBERS BEING EQUAL TO A DISTANCESUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL TO THE WIDTH OF SILVER BEING PROCESSED SO THAT SAIDSIDE CONTROL MEMBERS ENGAGE THE SILVER BEING PROCESSED ON OPPOSITE SIDESTHEREOF THROUGHOUT ITS PASSAGE BETWEEN SAID APRONS;